Cell phone art competition draws global entries

The cell phone will single handedly bring down the Western world, according to some.

Jeanné McCartin

The cell phone will single handedly bring down the Western world, according to some.

It certainly is both saving grace and scourge. It's also the latest, valuable tool in the artistic arsenal for a growing number of people.

The cell phone camera allows for new creative freedom and spontaneity. Its rapid advancements since hitting the marketplace in 2000, along with the ever-growing number of apps allowing for creative manipulation, make it an attractive artistic tool to professional and amateur artists alike.

Stonecrop Gallery in Ogunquit, owned and operated by Dana Berenson, also owner of La Muse Photography, will hold "Shoot and Tell," its third annual cell phone juried photography exhibition this summer.

The event, like phone camera use itself, has grown dramatically in its short time in history. Last year there were approximately 75 submissions, with the show featuring more than 150 images. This year Berenson expects twice the number of entries.

"We had (entries) from all over the world — everywhere. We drew from Israel, South America, and Canada ...; from emerging and established photographers," she says of the show's first years.

The call for art then went out through organizations, other galleries and universities.

"It was incredible how the news snowballed; a friend would tell a friend who told a friend. It was everyone from well-known artists to your Aunt Sally," Berenson says, adding that status isn't a requirement. "It's about beautiful, interesting images. If we like them, they're in the show."

Artists may submit up to five images. The deadline is May 16 online at www.stonecropgallery.com/submit. The cost of submission is $15 per artist. StoneCrop prints accepted works at no cost to the artists.

Berenson's interest is a "full range" esthetic.

"I'm not set on one style. If something catches my eye and I love it, I want to sell it," she says.

There are those who argue that cell phone photos are not art, Berenson says, "but I don't believe that."

"If you have a good eye, a decent vision, the media doesn't matter," she says. "The phone is as good as you are. The quality is different, but I judge by the image more than what it's taken with. ...; There are people wildly popular on Instagram making a living with cell phone photography."

Different intents require different methods.

Berenson wouldn't shoot a wedding or family portrait with a cell phone, she says. "But as a fine artist I like it."

David Sullivan, owner of D Sullivan Photography of Ogunquit, is of the same mind. The professional photographer has shown his work in the StoneCrop phone camera exhibits and plans to submit this year again.

"What I find with my cell phone is it's so much more spontaneous," he says.

Shooting with the traditional camera is more laborious. It generally means scheduling, planning out the day and being mindful of logistics and catching the right light.

"I just always have my cell phone with me. I can catch a moment. I'm not interested in light, but composition and catching something spontaneously. Maybe it's more whimsical because you're in the right place at the right time," Sullivan says. "I never limit myself to a tool. I try to let my art come with whatever brush I have at the time. If I'm inspired ...; I catch it."

Jasmin Hunter, of Jasmin Hunter Photography of Portsmouth, has used the cell phone camera for some time, but only recently started more pointed use of it for fine art, as well as commercial application.

Again, it's that spontaneity that is so attractive, she says, "usually when I'm traveling around."

Her phone camera offers high dynamic range imaging, "which means it automatically takes multiple exposures at different settings ...; and automatically overlays it, but it looks like a single photos," Hunter says.

Translation, she adds: it takes beautiful shots.

"I'm getting more interested in it and getting more involved. I plan on using it more for landscape because it's so much easier and does a great job," Hunter says. "The other day I was driving back from a photo session and the sunset was gorgeous. I pulled the car over and quickly got the shot."

There are additional advantages.

Hunter, who plans to submit to StoneCrop, also uses her phone to capture backstage shots of performers during shows she helps to promote. The advantage is the phone camera allows quick upload to social media, which helps get the word out in real time.

"The cell phone forces you to get more creative because you don't have the lenses that do fancy stuff," Hunter says. "So instead, you do more creative angles for example."

StoneCrop is located in a building with rich artistic history. It was built by artist Grace Merrill in the 1920s and housed a studio or gallery for most of its history. Berenson bought it nine years ago, as a residence and gallery.

"Its history was a factor in buying it. I love the history. It was built by a woman who opened a gallery in it. ...; It has been owned primarily by women and they were artists,' Berenson says. "So when I bought the house it was a big part of it."

Printmaker Beverly Hallam and painter Ruth Seeger are two of the more recent past owners.

The past and the future have something to offer. There is the rich arts and cultural history of the gallery and its community, and there are the ever-expanding creative opportunities, including the technological ones of now and the future.

Berenson isn't sure when the trend for fine art cell phone photography started, "but every day it gets stronger and stronger for professionals and amateurs," she says. Mainstream media now uses cell phone photography for publication; for example Time magazine covered Hurricane Sandy with iPhones and Instagram, and used a phone camera shot for its cover.

"Cell phone photography is all over the place," Berenson says. "It's a medium that's going to stick around."

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